Telegraph-transmitter.



C. G. TAYLOR.

TELEGRAPH TRANSMITTER.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 4. 19I4.

Patented Dec, 12, 1916.

3 SHEETSSHEET I.

T wm wo CFG. TAYLOR.

TELEGRAPH TRANSMITTER. APPLlCATiON FILE'D MAY 4. 19'4.

Patented Dec. 12, 1916.

3 SHEETS -SHEET 2.

WJIT BBEEE:

C. G. TAYLOR.

TELEGRAPH TRANSMITTER.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 4. I914.

LfiQfiflWK Patented Dec. 12, 1916.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

Fig-12- iii. e ra rlts ra rnn r nt mw cnanitns e. TAYLOR, or Los ANGELE's, CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNOR TO THE TELEGRAPH TRANSMITTER COMPANY, or LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, A CORPORATION or CALIFORNIA.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that l, CHARLES G. TAYLOR, a citizen of the United States, residing at Los Angeles, in the county of Los Angeles and State of California, have invented a new and useful Telegraph-Transmitter, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to that class of telegraph transmitters in which an ordinary typewriter keyboard with finger pieces connected to levers is employed for transmitting a message and the invention is adapted for use with a Morse telegraph instrument or the like, and may be employed in connection with an ordinary telegraph system or in wireless telegraphy or telephony whereever messages are transmitted on the principles of the Morse system.

An object of the invention is to provide a cheap, simple, compact, portable, light apparatus that can be readily connected to and disconnected from an ordinary telegraph key and also changed from one to another when there are a number of telegraph keys in an office by simply plugging in the circuit breaker of the telegraph key to be used.

In order to make an instrument ofthis character practical it is necessary to avoid any liability ofshort-circuiting at the send ing station and to obviate any interference which might arise through varying resistances and various impedances in the line and atthe stations.

.An object of this invention is to provide an instrument of this kind which will be adapted to plug into any ordinary Morse telegraph key at any sending station of a Morsetelegraph system, thus to operate any and every sounder at any receiving station.

on the line.

Objects of the invention are to provide at minimum cost a durable, practical and positive device adapted to increase the speed and accuracy of sending messages and to avoid the muscular strain incident to working the ordinary telegraph key, which, in a great many instances, produces operators paralysis or cramps, thus unfitting the operator for active duty.

An object is to restore to full service those Y telegraph operators who have become incapacitatedby excessive use of the telegraph key, and to provide a telegraph transmitter that can be operated at standard speed by Specification of -Jtetters Patent.

TELEGRAPH-TRANSMITTER.

Patented Dec. 12, 191 6..

Application filed May a, 1914. serial a... 836,381.

series of paired contact devices while causing relative movement between the locked contact devices and their mates, so that the operator in sending the message need not move his finger with great agility to operate the keys of the instrument, but may, even while starting to press the succeeding key, Without confusion, allow a finger to lin er upon one of such keys for a period; the ngers being introduced to a rhythmic movement through the yielding of each key at the initial moment of its sending. This will be more fully explained hereinafter.

Another object is to provide means whereby the same character will be repeated indefinitely so lon as a key is'held down, thus to facilitate the calling of a station.

An object is to make provision for perfect accuracy of transmitting, and perfect spacing between characters; and to avoid any ing and vice-versa.

The invention is regarded as basic and pioneer in simultaneously and positively locking out of contact all of the non-contacting contact devices and locking in contact the contacting contact devices during the period of the character at any time being transmitted; and also the standardizing of the periods of allthe characters by mak-v ing on difierent scales the contact points and the spaces between them which go to make up the characters to be transmitted, so that the period for transmission of each character is minimized. By this latter feature I have succeedeed in condensing the sending contact devices carrying the longer charac- .ters and reducing them to medium size as will more fully hereinafter appear. That is to say, the longer characters are represented by contact points and spaces between them made on a minimized scale, shorter charac ters on asomewhat larger scale and the short characters and those of medium length on a. larger scale. In this way the sendlng is facilitated and the time thereof shortened and yet the longer characters are distinctive as though the full time were given to each dot and dash represented, the acceleration as compared with the other characters serving to give each a distinctive quality.

If all the characters were made on the same scale as the period, the longest character in the Morse code, there would be excessive spacingjoetween the shorter characters.- Therefore I have shortened the time of sending the longer characters to the time of the average character by making on a reduced scale the contact points and the spacing therebetween which go to make up the longest characters, and on an intermediate scale the contact points and spaces therebetween which go to make up the characters of intermediate length.

Further features, objects and advantages may appear from the subjoined detail deseription. I 4

The accompanying drawings illustrate the invention.

Figure l is a fragmental plan view of a telegraph apparatus constructed in accordance with this invention, in "its preferred form, except that a broken transparent top is shown on the transmitter frame while ordinarily a metal top will beused. Fig. 2 is a sectional elevation-on line w a: Fig. 1, showing the apparatus transmiting a numeral. Fig. 3 is a fra-gmental elevation of the connection plug in contact with the telegraph key. Fig. 4 is a diagram to illustrate thewiring and electrical contacts of the transmitter. Fig. 5 is a diagram illustrating the proportional spacing of the projections of the notched contact devices representing the various characters to be transmitted by the transmitter shownin Fig. 1. Fig. 6 is a fragmental sectional elevation from line 02, Figs. 1 and 8 showing the transmission of the character zero. A modified form of key lever is shown. Fig. 7 is a fragmental sectional elevation from line ac, Figs. 1 and 8. Fig. 8 is an enlarged fragmental sectional detail of the character series of contacts and means for moving the same. The

journals, lock operating cam, driving gear,

' permanent contact disk and appropriate invP sulation therefor are also shown. Fig. 9 is a side elevation of one of, the contact 0 erating key levers with its insulating mem er in place; the retaining clip being omitted from the view. Fig. 10 is an enlarged crosssection of the modified contact, operating means from line 00 Fig. 6. Fig. 11 is an elevation from line 0:, Fig. a, on the scale of Fig. 6. Figs. 12, 13, 14, and 15 are side elevations of typical character-contact disks graphically indicating the four various scalesupon which the characters of said disks are constructed. Fig, 16 is a planview of the contact spring plate detached. A fragment of the slitted insulating fiber sheet is also shown in place. Portions of the insulating plate and the contact spring plate are broken to expose a part of an auxiliary spring. Fig. 17 is an end elevation of the two spring sheets and the insulating sheet shown in Fig. 16.

The electrical transmitter comprises two series a, b, of electrical contact devices 1, 2, arranged in pairs as mates, the contact devices 1 of one series being electrically connected with one electrical conductor 3, and -51 from each other by aninsulating block 11 and adapted through a plug 19 for electrical connection with the opposite poles 5, 6 of the circuit breaker of a telegraph instrument 0, and through such instrument with a telegraph line d in electrical circuit; each contact device 1 of one series a being provided with an intermittent character-sending contact surface preferably formed by contacting projections 7 and notches 8, and the contact device 2 of the other series b being adapted to make intermittent electrical connection through the contact surfaces of the projections 7 successively, thus to transmit the character over the line. Means are provided for causing continuous movement of one series of said contact devices relative to the other series of contact devices for the "purpose of transmitting electrical impulses corresponding to the characters represented by the separated contact points or surfaces of such device during a period of contact between the mates of any pair, such mates being adapted to make electrical contact with each other exclusively, and to make such contact only during a period to represent a character to be transmitted. Suitable means are provided for relatively adjusting the contact devices of one pair into contacting position independently of the other contact devices, so that only the contact devices of one pair will be in circuit at any time; and means are rovided to look any pair of contacting devices in contacting relation during-the period of sending one character. rovision is also made whereby the period of locking the contact for any character is the same as that for any other character, and provision is also made for" looking out of contact all the pairs except the one contact pair that is locked in contact relation.

In the form shown the contact devices 1 m w r a of one series are disks peripherally notched on their opposite sides representing in duplicate one character for each disk so that at each rotation of any disk during contact the electrical impulse or impulses for such character will .be made and repeated provided the contacting relation is established and remains unchanged. It is understood that the character may be thus represented one or more times at the pleasure of the constructor tovsuit any demand that may arise. Provision is made however whereby the locking device is automatically released at the end of the period of each character. Each of said disks is provided with character separating notches 9 to separate between the ending and beginning of the character. i

The contacting devices 2 of the other series 6 consist of the tips of springs 10 which in the form shown are made by slitting, for a considerable space, a spring plate 11, the contact tongues 10 thus formed being spaced apart and arranged to stand normally out of electrical contact and adapted to be sprung or deflected to contact at their tips respectively, with the projections of the notched peripheries of the contact disks and also to rest upon insulating means when in the notches between said projections; such insulating means consisting in the form shown of disks 12 of hard fiber or rubber or other suitable insulating material; said disks 12 having a radius slightly less than the outer periphery of the contact disks and somewhat greater than the periphery of the contact disks at the notches. The contact devices are thus adapted for intermittent contact, the depressed tongues riding alter nately on the outer peripheries of the contacting and insulating disks respectively.

Suitable means are provided for moving the contact springs 10 to force the contacts 2 into contacting position and the same comprise key levers l3 stamped from sheet metal and provided on one side or edge with a fulcrum notch 14 and a finger piece 15 and \provided on the other side or edge with a locking detent 17 .and with a finger 16 or a retaining notch 16 for a finger 18; there being insulating means of hard fiber or other insulating material between each finger piece and the contact device it is to'operate. The insulating means shown in FigsA 1, 2, 16 and 17 comprise a tongued insu lating sheet 18 and in Figs. 6, 9 and 10 the insulating fingers 18 are held in place by suitable means as a spring sheet metal clip 19 bent around the key 13 and the part of the insulating member 18 contained in the notch.

The finger 18 or 18 of each key is adapted to depress the spring 10 of its appropriate contact device whenever the key is depressed; and the resilient character of the 1 spring and its auxiliary 10' is such as to "lift the key 13 and withdraw the contact device 2 from contacting position whenever the key is free to be thus lifted.

Locking means are provided for the keys respectively and said means comprise a dog ,20 formed of a hook on a sheet 21 of metal orothersuitable material bent at one edge to form the hook and bent at the other edge to form an eye or journal box 22 through which a pin 23 is inserted to support the hook, said pin being in turn supported at its ends by the frame 23 of the .apparatus. Said frame may be made of sheet metal or other material in any desired manner and carries an insulating support 25 for the contact springs 10. The auxiliary spring 10, the spring plate 11 and insulating plate 18 are suitably fixed as by screws 26 to the top of the insulating bar 25.

The character disks 1 and insulating disks 27 between thesame are co-axially mounted on a conducting shaft 8 and in fixed relation thereto to rotate therewith, the shaft being for that purpose provided with key-ways 28 in which inwardly projecting teeth 28 on the disks engage. Said teeth are radially alined with the character-separating notches 9 so that all of the character separating notches are in alinement along the shaft when the disks are in place on the shaft. Centrally on the shaft there is mounted a gear wheel 29 meshing with a worm gear 30 driven by a motor 31 which is preferably an electric motor that can be connected through the lead lines 32, 33, rheostat 34 and switch 35 with any suitable source of electrical energy such as a battery or electric light circuit.

When the switch 35 is in position indicated in Figs..t and 6, the motor 31 will drive the shaft 8 at a speed determined by the position of the rheostat 34 thereby rotating the contact disk at a determined speed. Upon pressing the finger piece of any free key, the contact spring for such key is depressed to produce electrical contact between the tip 2 thereof and the pro- ;jections of its contact disk mate, said contact device 2 riding alternately on the projections and on the insulation between said projections causes intermittent electrical contact to sound the character on the sounder of the telegraph instrument. In order that such character will be fully transmitted, automatic locking means. are provided to operate the locking dog formed by the hook 20 which is connected by a connecting rod 36 with a locking lever 37 nor- 40 is sharp so that the dog 20 is retracted" number of characters on any disk and the contact with cam projections 39 and ta-ppet from-and advanced to locking position within :the period of one of the separating notches 9, during which time the contact spring is free to lift the key lever provided that the same is freed. Consequently,

when a. cam projection 39 acts on the tappet 40, to. withdraw the dog 20 from looking position, any key may be depressed; and when the cam projection has released the tappet, the spring 38 will return the dog into locking position, thereupon engaging the detent 17 and holding the key depressed untilthe cam projection again retracts the dog.

In order to nakethe key action move positive without allowing corresponding strong pressure of the spring contact 2 upon the contactdisks, auxiliary springs 10 are provided to supplement the key lifting portion of springs 10. I

It is thus seen that the period for each character is the same throughout all the disks irrespective of the number of dots, dashes and spaces required to represent the character and consequently the sending operation is carried on by successively depressing the appropriate keys at the period of the cam action; that is to say, at the period of the separating space between the end and beginning of a character.

' Referring to Fig.2 it will be noted that the detents 17 of the keys are locked by the Y dog whether the keys are depressed or not and that said locking prevents the movement of any key-during the period of the transmission of the character; consequently the operator, after depressing one key and thereby establishing the transmission of the character represented by said-key, may at once apply pressure to depress the finger piece of the immediately succeeding character without interferring with the transmission of the character at that moment being transmitted; but as soon as the transmission of such transmitting character ceases and the dog isretracted by the cam projection thus releasing the previous key, the depression of the succeeding key becomes efi'ective so that immediately after the dog is released, thus releasing the previous key, it locks in contacting position the key then'depressed and locks in non-contacting position allthe other keys. It is found,

' however, that the operator can readily acquire the rhythm of the machine and that with slight practice he is able to depress the keys respectively at the moment of the cam action, thus ena ling him to operate the machine with a gentle, unobstructed movement to produce the successive characters asrequired.

The Morse code characters being made up of dots, spaces and dashes normally represent periods of different length, and I have made provision whereby all the characters with their appropriate spacin may be made of uniform, length, thus making rhythmic operation of the key board possible without distortion or confusion of the characters.

In order to adapt the machine for the uniform rhythmic movement with uniform separating spaces between the characters, the projections and notches of the character disks or equivalent contact devices are constructed on difi'erent scales and in true relative proportions. This will be understood by reference to Fig. 5 where the characters for the alphabet, with the exception of the letter J, are on one scale; the letter J, the comma and the numerals, including zero, are on a second scale; the interrogation point on a third scale, and the period on a fourth scale. In the first scale 41, where duplicate characters are provided for each disk, the disk is divided into twenty-four arts; twelve to each character as indicated y the broken and dotted radial lines 42, in Fig. 12; in the scale within the same space as before, an appropriately larger number of unitsof measurement for said character; the scale 43 being such as to give thirty divisions to the entire list, or fifteen for the expression of each character as indicated by the broken radial lines 44, in Fig. 13; and likewise the scale 45 for the interrogation point is reduced to afford thirty-two divisions for the entire disk, or sixteen divisions for the expression of the character, as indicated by the broken radial lines 46 in Fig. 14, While the punctuation character viz. the period expressed in the last scale 47 involves thirty-six divisions to the disk and consequently eighteen divisions for the expression of the character as indicated in broken radial lines 48, Fig. 15, and each division represents the shortest ele ment of the character. That is to say, a dot or a space and the dashes and separating spaces are multiples of such division. This is true of the respective disks belonging to each of the scales respectively.

The switch 35, laced beside the keyboard, can conveniently e shifted to open the line and close the motor circuit for sending and can instantly be shifted to open the motor circuit and close the main line for receiving. When the plug 72 is detached from the key, the regular circuit breaker can be used to 'close the circuit and the plug attached to any other key.

he contact key lever 13 may be constructed with a fulcrumnotch 14 on top and a of assembling, the notch 14 is caught under a cross rod 49 which forms a fulcrum for the key as shown in Fig. 6 instead of resting on the insulation block 18 as shown in Fig. 2, and the insulation finger 18 is made to rest on the contact spring.

The construction of the key levers is such that they can be easily removed in order to make replacements of any part of the apparatus in case of damage or wear.

The spur wheel 29 for the worm gear is insulated from the shaft 8 by the insulating bushin 49 fixed to the shaft and spur wheel after t ie same manner as the disks 1.

The contact shaft 8 is provided with suitable journals formed of pins 50 seated in insulating plugs 51 in the ends of the shaft 8, which is an electrical conductor, hollowed out to receive the plugs 51, the journal pins 50 being journaled in suitable journal boxes, not shown, constructed in the frame 24. The shaft 8 is in constant electrical connection with the conductor 3 through the brush 3 and permanent contact disk 52, but when the switch 35 is thrown to open the motor circuit 32, 33 and to close the main line circuit, 3, 4 the main line is in condition for receiving on the sounder not shown.

The insulating body shown for the contact springs in Figs. 16 and 17 is a slitted sheet of hard fiber or other nonconducting material practically conformed to the slitted con tact spring sheet 11 and tongues 10, there being a tongue of insulating material for each contact tongue 10; said tongues being sufficiently long to support the fingers 18 or 18' of the keys respectively, the auxiliary spring 10' is a slitted sheet of spring metal having tongues of less lengthto support the contact tongues.

The contact tongues 10 ride by their centers on the contact surfaces of the disks 1 and by their edges upon the insulating disks tongue tips during the contact. lFurthermore, the constantly moving contact devices are free from friction except that caused by contact of the particular single contact spring depressed to send the character, and there are no loose joints through which the current flows to cause resistance, corrosion or loss of current. The electrical contact a I between the contact disks and their roller springs to each operating to lift its key and break the contact when the key is released; thus simplifying the instrument and minimizing the number of parts.

I claim:-

1. An electrical telegraph transmitter comprising electrical conductors insulated from each other; a conducting shaft connected to one of said conductors; electrical contact disks mounted on the shaft, electrically connected thereto and rotating therewith, and having intermittent contacting peripheries representing characters to be transmitted; means to rotate the shaft; contact devices connected to the other conductor and normally out of contact with the contact disks and out of circuit therewith, and adapted to independently contact withsaid disks respectively, each with its own disk exclusively; and means to cause the contact devices separately to contact with their disks respectively during the periods of the characters res ectively.

2. A tel egraph transmitter comprising a series of electrically connected notched contact disks, means to simultaneously rotate all of said disks, contact points to contact with and projecting beyond both sides of the projections between the notches, means for alternatively moving the contact points into contacting position, and insulating disks of less radius than the projections to support the contact points on-both sides of the contact disks adjacent the spaces between the projections.

3. A telegraph transmitter comprising series of contact devices, provided respectively with difierent characters arranged with like periods and constructed on difi'erent scales so as to equalize the spacing, thereby allowing the longer characters to be produced in a medium period of time.

4. In a telegraph transmitter, the combination with contact devices having characters, of a conducting spring plate slitted to form tongues for said contact devices respectively, fingers to move said tongues respectively into contact with said contact devices, and a slitted insulating sheet having tongues between the fingers and the contact tongues respectively.

5. In a telegraph transmitter, the combination with contact devices having characters, of a conducting spring plate slitted to form tongues for said contact devices respectively, fingers to move said tongues respectively into contact with said contact devices, a slitted plate forming auxiliary springs under the conducting springs, and a slitted insulating sheet having tongues between the fingers and the contact tongues respectively.

6. In a telegraph transmitter the combr nation with rotating contact devices; of contacting devices to contact therewith; keys to depress said devices, said keys being proltd ltd

vided respectively with a detent; a dog to engage the detent; a locking lever; a connecting rod connecting the dog with the locking lever; a cam rotating with the rotating contact device and actuatin the looking lever; and a spring to hold tfie locking lever normally in locking position.

7. The combination with a shaft, of means to rotate the shaft; rotary contact devices on the shaft; contact devices to contact with the rotary contact devices; keys to operate the last-mentioned contact devices; said keys being provided with detents; a dog to engage the detents; a cam rotating with the rotary contact devices; means connected with 15 the dog'and operated by the cam to move the dog out of locking osition; and a spring to hold the dog norma l in locking position.

In testimony whereo I have hereunto set my hand at Los Angeles, California, this 2 28th day of April, 1914.

CHARLES G. TAYLOR. 

